Around the UK

Coach Warren Gatland, widely criticised for his team selection in the build-up to the game after choosing to drop Brian O'Driscoll, leaves the field with the cheers of the Lions fans ringing in his ears

Best Lions points tallies in Tests

41 - v Australia, 2013

31 - v Australia, 1966

29 - v Australia, 2001

28 - v South Africa, 1974 & 2009

"Ask me on Tuesday or Wednesday what it was like and I may be able to describe it," said the lock, an inspired choice as captain for the tourists' finest hour since the 1997 series was clinched in Durban. "At the minute I am outside the moment."

A short while earlier, Jones and fellow Welshman Jamie Roberts were drinking it in, lying exultant on their backs amid the red-and-white tinsel tape blanketing the old Olympic Stadium pitch.

While the legions of Lions supporters joined in raucously as Tom Jones's Delilah boomed around the arena, the players' expressions suggested mild disbelief at what they had just accomplished.

So commanding was their lead, so demoralised were the Wallabies, that Warren Gatland and his fellow coaches felt able to leave their box and join the rest of the staff on the touchline for the final five minutes.

"Test match rugby is agony or ecstasy, there's nothing in between," said the New Zealander, who has had his fair share of both. "When you get the ecstasy, you've got to enjoy that moment, not just myself but everyone involved. Emotionally they have put so much into it."

Perhaps this week more than any other.

Halfpenny showed he is a dazzling attacking runner as well as a deadly goal kicker

Gatland said he took no pleasure
in seeing his decision to make six changes, and deprive Brian O'Driscoll of the send-off an outstanding Lions servant deserved, fully vindicated.

The flak flying his way in recent days, not just over O'Driscoll, but also the suggestion he was favouring his own Wales players by picking 10 of them, has clearly stung.

Gatland would have been within his rights to snipe back at the former players and media commentators who questioned whether his actions had undermined the whole Lions ethos.

As it is, he has ensured the brand will continue to thrive and thrill for years to come, and enhanced his own reputation in the process.

The next mission to New Zealand in 2017 may be the most hazardous of the lot, but at least those charged with tackling it will head south without the millstone of a 20-year winless streak weighing them down.

In truth the omission of O'Driscoll, and his leadership, was never likely to be the critical factor in this deciding Test, and so it proved.

The scrum, an old weakness the Wallabies thought they had cast aside, returned to haunt them in spectacular fashion.

Given a French referee, Romain Poite, renowned for rewarding the dominant scrum, there was always a suspicion that with prop Alex Corbisiero back at loose-head, and Richard Hibbard adding ballast at hooker alongside Adam Jones, the Wallabies might struggle to contain the Lions eight.

The tourists were awarded two free-kicks and three penalties from the first six scrums. The first free-kick led to Corbisiero's early converted try, and Leigh Halfpenny dispatched the three penalties.

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Gatland: Lions were exceptional

Corbisiero, who Gatland nominated as his man of the match for his "sensational" display around the field as well as his contribution at the scrum, gave Australia tight-head Ben Alexander such a torrid time that when the Wallaby was sent to the sin-bin for collapsing the scrum again on 25 minutes, his side decided they were better off without him, leaving Sekope Kepu on in his place.

The hosts had said they intended to "take the Lions outside their comfort zone". But by failing to control the opening kick-off, which they allowed to bounce before Will Genia knocked it on, they actually helped their opponents gain belated value from an obvious strength and take control.

Stand-in skipper Jones led from the front, carrying more ball than any other player. Everything he did had an intensity and passion that inspired those around him.

“I just hope the next 48 hours doesn't get out of hand; that is my big concern, as we don't fly out until Tuesday!”

Warren Gatland

Though Halfpenny was voted man of the series, the Ospreys lock was surely the outstanding Lions forward, his unflinching commitment encapsulated in an early hit on Australian counterpart James Horwill that set the tone.

Sean O'Brien made 11 tackles in the first half alone, and 13 out of 15 in all. Number eight Toby Faletau put in a trademark tireless shift, and won a vital turnover near the Lions line. George North oozed menace.

The backs - with the fit-again Roberts making some headway - were solid rather than spectacular for the first 50-odd minutes, before exploding into life.

Jonathan Davies justified his selection with a pivotal role in Jonny Sexton's try that effectively took the game away from Australia, while Halfpenny's running skills further illuminated the tourists' performance.

The 24-year-old had already punished the hosts with his deadly right boot, his only blemish from the tee in nine attempts from out on the left touchline with the game effectively sewn up after North's try made it 34-16.

"I think he has established himself as a pretty iconic figure in the game now," Jones said of Halfpenny. "He has been a talisman throughout the tour and the plaudits he gets are more than deserved."

Halfpenny landed 39 of his 44 kicks on this trip, including 17 from 21 amid the extra pressure of the Test series. Not least of the many satisfying aspects of this success is that history will not recall his missed effort from halfway with the last kick of the second Test as a defining moment of the series.

While Australia did not appear to have much faith in their kicker, Christian Leali'ifano, landing anything from more than 30 metres as they opted to kick five first-half penalties to touch rather than at goal, Halfpenny's technique is so well honed even the ones he misses are by minuscule margins.

Alun Wyn Jones and Jamie Roberts get the party started by making tinsel angels on the Olympic Stadium pitch

Nor is he alone in enhancing his reputation. Gatland was effusive in his praise for the impact of scrum-half Conor Murray, hooker Tom Youngs and the rest of the bench in a stirring collective effort.

"These guys have done themselves and that jersey proud," Gatland added. "They deserve a huge amount of credit for that performance and what they have achieved, and not just the 23 players but the whole squad, the management, the medical and support staff. I think they have been exceptional on and off the field.

"I just hope the next 48 hours doesn't get out of hand; that is my big concern, as we don't fly out until Tuesday! But all the people involved, and the players in particular, have to enjoy the moment."

Absolutely. Lions series wins do not come around too often. The odds are always stacked against them.

If the class of 2013 bring the same passion and intensity they showed on the field to the celebrations, and there is no reason to doubt they will, the party will go on for a while yet.

Just joined this thread. Why no match highlights or any terrestrial coverage of this tour? BBC swamped by London-based sport again (Wimblebore) and its new--found love Glastoballs. Shame also on Lions admin for selling out to Sky. An epoch-making British (and Irish) team with no British TV coverage. Had to resort to You Tube - the People's Rugby Channel.

There are people on this website whose only ambition in life is to wind people up and to see what response they get. The more outrageous the comments or remarks, the more response, hence they push the boundries even further. Please do not waste time and effort in replying to their blogs. But merely laugh at their ignorance. They will soon stop writing!

@328 and @330 - don't dispute the dominance of the Lions forwards but in my playing experience, rugby is about creating a platform up front and creating space for backs to exploit. No shame there! As for which was best backs try - wasn't suggesting Roberts' was the best, merely (as a centre myself) enjoying the sweetness of Roberts' run. Agree North and Murray's role in it just as important.

Same rubbish old arguments - all this is yesterdays news. What about the situation with Robbie Deans and the effect this will have on Australia, RWC etc..? Where's the real analysis? Why is everyone so stuck on what happened before Saturday? Lions won. Next?

Why the fuss about so many Welshmen on the Lions lineup. Any of the home nations could field a winning Lions side with the addition of half a dozen top players from the other nations. The day of the Lions is gone and they are no longer needed. The home nations are good enough to stand on their own.

I have been one of Gatland's biggest critics but I have to say he did get it right in the end. His plan of purely direct, forward dominated Rugby finally worked in this game after failing in the first two, but he got the job done and you can't say fairer than that. Hopefully he will pick some Scots if he is coach in 2017, although sure he won't. Still great stuff though!

@ 323 - think the chap from the Rolf Harris song will be after you shortly. What you say is an utter disgrace and totally insulting about elite sportsmen in an elite sport with elite coaches and elite....well elite everything!

@322 more to do with lack of quality centres available in Britain and Ireland at the mo. Well, ones that would fit in with WG's style of play anyway.I wouldn't like to single any player out for special mention, it was a very good team effort. Everyone has there favorites and some people would prefer others than those picked. But no one can say those picked haven't done us all proud!!!!

@311 - I thought BOD was lucky to make the plane frankly, but not even I think that dropping him was the catalyst for the margin of victory. If you want to put it down to one player (I don't), Corbisiero seems to be a good place to start. Having a ref with a clue as to what a scrum is helped too.

Forwards win games.

Awesome finish to the series. Horwill total class in post-defeat interviews.

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